Laubade Floc de Gascogne blanc is 17% and a light yellow gold with an arresting aroma of sharp and bitter notes and alcohol. The taste is tart, sweet and dry at the same time. Quite sharp and fruity tasting, it has tones of pineapple and hints of pine sap, making it very interesting, refreshing and complex. I have tasted the December 2005 and the March 2006 bottlings, each when they were 8-10 months old, and found them quite similar.

Appelltion Floc de Gascogne contrôllée is a style of lightly fortified sweet / tart wine usually served in France chilled, without ice, in a wine glass as an aperitif. It also goes well with foie gras, dessert and chocolates. Floc de Gascogne is meant to be drunk immediately and should be enjoyed within a year or less of of the production. The date of bottling is usually hidden in very small type on the bottom of the back label. Once it gets to around a year or more in age it starts to deteriorate rapidly.

Floc de Gascogne is made from traditional Gascony recipes originating in the 16th century by combining 1/3 fresh, unfermented grape must (juice) with 2/3 of the finest Armagnac. The grapes are grown in Gascony vineyards located in Gers and a few parishes in Lot-et-Garonne and Landes of South West France. The Armagnac must be made from grapes grown, distilled, and aged in the same winery as the unfermented must. After blending, the wine is then stored in barrels for at least ten months for aging.

It must have a certified committee of experts bestow the Appellation d'Origine Floc de Gascogne approval on it before it can be bottled and sold. The wine has an alcohol content between 16% and 18%abv, and is also known as a vin de liqueur. It is similar in style to Pineau des Charentes which uses Cognac rather than Armagnac for the fortification. Floc de Gascogne should be enjoyed cool or chilled within a year of the production.

The wine can be made either a blanc or rosé. Floc de Gascogne blanc is made of Le Colombard, Ugni Blanc and Gros Manseng grapes. These are fruity, full bodied, and balanced, white grapes. Floc de Gascogne rosé is made of red, aromatic Cabernet Franc grapes; red Cabernet Sauvignon grapes with complex aromas; and red Merlot grapes with ahigh sugar content.